


The Stars Up Above

by seltzerboy



Category: Rebel Without a Cause (1955)
Genre: Comfort, Emotional Hurt, Friendship/Love, M/M, Mentions of Judy, late night walks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-08
Updated: 2018-08-08
Packaged: 2019-06-23 23:11:58
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15617106
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seltzerboy/pseuds/seltzerboy
Summary: Plato needs to get away from his mother, and he thinks of Jim.





	The Stars Up Above

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a short story I thought of. In this universe Plato never ran away and he wasn’t killed. Obviously. But he’s still friends with Jim and Judy. Enjoy :)

Silence. 

That’s all Plato could hear. 

The silence was welcome, it replaced the thoughts in his head, the thoughts that were always there and always too much. Thoughts that told him to do things he didn’t want to do most of the time. Like kill those puppies. He just couldn’t help it, his mind was telling him that they were wrong. Too innocent, too pure, too much. So he had killed them. But that was the past. He didn’t want to think about that anymore, not right now. The streets were empty, except for himself. Who else in their right mind would be out wandering at three in the morning? But Plato wasn’t in his right mind, he never had been, and probably never would be. He had to get away from it all, from his house and his mother and his mind. He liked the silence of the empty roads, the look of the street lamps against the black sky. Well, not black. Not exactly. It was more of a deep, dark blue. There were clouds visible, blocking out the stars partially. The stars. He thought back to that day in the planetarium, that day when Jim had gotten into that jam with Buzz. Plato was thinking about the sky and the stars and the endless possibilities they held, and he was also thinking about Jim. 

His friend. Plato had never really had a friend until Jim. And Judy, but Judy wasn’t Jim. She was nice, and he liked the way she talked softly and the way she would let him rest his head on her legs sometimes. But Jim was different. Jim was always happy to help Plato, with whatever he needed. If Plato was ever cold, Jim would offer him his jacket, the red one that he knew Plato liked so much. If Plato couldn’t quite figure out a problem for school, Jim would help him work through it until he got it. And if Plato ever needed to get away from his mother, away from his mind, he could count on Jim to help him out. It made Plato smile, to think about his friend. With his kind eyes and strong face. Jim always knew what to do. He was always there. 

That gave Plato an idea, an idea that cheered him up. He would go pay Jim a visit! He knew it was late, but he wouldn’t stay long. Just stop in to say hello, to see his friend. He began walking towards the Stark residence, whistling a tune against the silence that surrounded him. The silence was also a friend, one that he could count on just like Jim. 

.

‘Dink!’ 

 

‘Dink!’

 

Jim groaned and rolled over in his bed, the covers wrapping around his body awkwardly. He opened his eyes slowly, letting them adjust to the darkness. He stared out at the window to his right, a square of blue and black and grey. He could have sworn he’d heard something. Maybe just a dream. He rolled back over, his back to the window. 

‘Dink!’ 

 

Jim flung the covers off his body, getting up and walking over to the window. He leaned against the glass, cupping his hand to look down at the ground below. In the darkness of the night he could see a figure standing on the grass. He squinted his eyes. Plato. It was only Plato. But what was he doing here at—Jim glanced down at his watch—3:30 in the morning? He opened the window nonetheless, trying to be quiet so he wouldn’t wake his mother and father. He leaned out into the night, resting his arms on the window sill. 

“Plato? What’re you doing here, kid?” 

“I just thought I’d stop by, see what’s going on!” Plato said quite loudly. 

“Shhh, Plato, you’ve gotta be quiet, my folks are asleep just down the hall,” Jim called out, keeping his voice to a whisper. Plato looked up at his friend, a smile on his face. 

“Can I come up? I won’t be long, I swear.” 

Jim sighed, turning around to look at his door. He could hear his father snoring loudly. He turned back out the window. 

“Alright, I’ll come open the door downstairs, but you’ve got to be quiet, okay?” Plato took his thumb and index finger together, running them along his mouth in a zipping motion. Jim smiled. He shut his window and crept out into the hall, only stepping on the carpet if he could help it. He made it downstairs to the front door, unlocking it as quietly as he could and swinging it open. Thankfully it didn’t creak. Plato was standing on the other side, bags under his eyes. Jim motioned for him to come inside, shutting the door after he did. 

“Come on,” he whispered, and they both crept back upstairs to Jims bedroom. Once inside, he shut the door and went over to his bed. Plato followed. 

“What’s going on, kid, why’d you think to pay me a visit at this hour? Was it your mother? What did she do?” Jim was already worried, seeing Plato’s tired eyes and sunken face. Plato didn’t say anything at first, he just shifted around on the bed a bit. 

“Well, she didn’t hit me, if that’s what you mean,” he finally said, and Jim’s face looked relieved. “But I just couldn’t deal with her any longer. The way she can’t seem to accept anything I do, no matter what. It’s as if she doesn’t even hear me when I try and talk to her, she only hears what she wants to.” This makes Jim worried again. 

“What did she say?” He asks, his voice low. Plato is avoiding his eyes, looking down at the blanket. 

“Nothing too unusual, I don’t think it would interest you very much to know.” Jim slowly brought on hand to rest on top of Plato’s, making the smaller boy jump a bit. He finally looked up to meet Jim’s eyes. He swallowed. “She was going on and on about how I need to stop being so weird, so strange. She said it wasn’t normal for boys my age to act like I do, to do the things I do.” He looked down again once he finished talking. 

Jim sighed, taking his hand off of Plato’s. He leaned back, resting on his elbows. 

“I don’t think it matters very much what your mother says, Plato. I think you’re just fine the way you are. I think it’s great to be different. I think you’re great.” He was smiling at his friend, now. He could understand why Plato’s mother would think the things she did, but he still didn’t agree with her. He thought that Plato’s mannerisms and idiosyncrasies were strange but intriguing, and he was glad to have a friend such as him. He knew Plato’s mind worked differently than his, different than most peoples. But he didn’t care. Plato was kind and smart, and he made Jim happy when he was around. A feeling in his chest that he couldn’t quite name, and he didn’t really want to. It was just Plato, the feeling and the person both mixed together. He was glad for both. 

He lay down on the bed, his head resting on his pillow. Plato stayed sitting up, his jacket still on. 

“Come on, Plato, lay down with me won’t you?” Jim gave him a puppy dog look, making the other boy laugh, a sound which Jim would never get tired of hearing. So Plato did. He took off his jacket, laying it on the ground, before slipping off his shoes as well. Jim caught a glimpse of his socks quickly, one red and one blue. He smiled. Plato laid down on the bed, next to his friend. 

“Don’t ever change, Plato, you hear me? Don’t ever change.” Jim put one hand on top of Plato’s heart, letting it rest there. Plato looked over at Jim’s face, his eyes closed. He was so grateful for his friend, with his strong heart and kind words. He closed his eyes as well, focusing on the pressure of Jim’s hand on his chest, forgetting both his mother and his mind, even just for the briefest of moments. He thought of the stars above them, even if he couldn’t see them, and the endless possibilities they held. 

He fell asleep next to his friend.


End file.
